September 14, 2013In the System, Sort Of

I got arrested this week. The charge was breaking and entering. The problem was that for once I wasn't breaking and entering. I'll admit I do things, sure it's to save lives ultimately, but I am doing illegal things as required. Anyway, I have a key to Myron's apartment. It's not the best copy so you have to fiddle with it. That didn't matter to the officer. She thought it was that trick you read about online. I don't blame her. I know I said a few choice words to the lock while trying to get it open.

It maybe wasn't the best of ideas, but I let her take me in. I mean right to the precinct. They processed me in before I got to call Myron. I got him to come in as my lawyer, as well as the owner of the apartment.How, you ask? I made like I was talking to a secretary first. He came and we cleared things up, however that was not the end of it. I had to get Melvin (later) to obscure the arrest records including switching the photos and fingerprints. The physical copies were another matter. I don't know how it went in the past, before the practicality of the Mericratic Party affected all levels of law. Now however, even in cases like mine, the records of the arrest remain, and the evidence, even though no charges were ultimately filed.

To deal with the pertinent paperwork, I made a ruckus in another room by splitting my attention off remotely and throwing things around, while I pocketed the fingerprint card from the completed but unfiled pile. The arrest papers I tore the file number off of the corners and slipped into another officer's completed pile--they're printed off after the arresting officer plugs in the information into the computer.

I had a notion to leave the fingerprints as is. The computer files pointing to a different person owning those prints influences juries. It shows a level of incompetence that then almost immediately makes people believe that other errors were made, especially in cases lacking direct witnesses. Calling out that the database has been hacked is even worse leading people to wonder how many files have been altered or destroyed and throwing even more doubt onto the legal system--one that people already see as swinging wildly between incompetent and corrupt. Some people might want to try to bring the legal system down, but I fear for what may happen if such a thing were to succeed. What we have is better than anarchy and chaos.

Myron and I hung around a safe distance away and waited for the O.S.I.R. to show up. We didn't wait too long, sadly. They are pretty efficient all told. If I had remained detained they would have had me. Had Myron taken too long they also would have had me.